Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-10-02
The President ana Pensions.

N lew OfcT ZcdlOub duu paTtlsssu
members of the Grand Army, whose
Republican bias is SO strong as to
warp their better judgment, wished
to create little political capital, and
not being able to discover any solid
ground on which to base an attack on
the Democratic President, undertook to
carry out the scheme on very narrow
and very hollow grounds. The PEN
sion question is, of course,
always a "live" one in
the Grand Army. The pocket ddes-
ton, the bread and butter question,
is always ''live" one in any body of
people. This was, therefore, seized
upon as the best on which to make an
issue. But the veterans are growing
old, and with the SHOWS of years upon
our heads hot counsels do not usually
commend themselves to our judgment
matured by long experience. The
resolutions looking to censuring the
President were so amended that all
the matter was stricken out, excepting
what referred to the veto of the bill
relating to Mrs. John A. Logan.
1t was well that those cooler coun-
sells prevailed, for any other course
would have reacted on those con-
cerned to their disadvantage. The
Presidents policy in relation to PEN
sions' has been liberal toward those
deserving soldiers who need national
aid; it has been just toward these who
neither deserved nor needed aid. We
win not say the deserving, needy ones
should be grateful. The nation pays
this debt with pleasure, and asks for
no gratitude. But from that relent-
lessly just policy which seeks to ex-
clude from the benefits of this
great national reward to the brave,
all who did not merit it, the soldiers
themselves reap by far the most good.
They should esteem it personal
blessing and an honor to every soldier
that pension brokers, schemers, un-
worthy and undeserving persons of
all sorts should be debarred from shar-
ing in this benefaction. Should such
schemers succeed, it would be by
open robbery of the whole nation; it
would be to the lasting dishonor Of
the deserving soldiers, for such a
course would bring the whole business
and all connected with it into lasting
ignominy; and finally, it would inn
peril the whole system, for when the
nation walked up and found itself
robbed shamelessly, the result might
not distinguish between the innocent
and guilty.
Now, General Black, Commissioner
of Pensions. in his last annual report
shows that at the close of the last fiscal
year, June 80, 1887, the pension rolls
contained 406,007 pensioners as fol-
lows: 294, ,445 army invalids; 5000
army widows, minor children, and de-
pendent relatives; 1881 navy invalids;
1875 navy widows, minor children and
dependent relatives; 1869 survivors of
the war of 1872, and IL ,831 widows
of those who served in that war; 1908
survivors of the war with Mexico, and
895 widows of those who served in
that war. There were added to the
rolls during the year So, ,194 new PEN
sioners, and 2707 whose pensions had
been previously dropped had been
restored. The names of IL
677 pensioners were dropped.
The aggregate annual value of all
pensions is $52, 2,s24,641, an increase
for the ,year. of $s,116,s33. The
amount paid for pensions during the
year was $73, ,465 ,5S1, an increase over
the previous year Of $9,669,750. The
amount paid to 44,019 new pensioners
during the year upon first payment
was $25, 5,166, 800; 1901 200 pension
claims have been filed since 1861, and
SIG, ,948 have been allowed; 55, 1874
certificates we're issued, a
greater number than ever before in
one year. The Commissioner advises
that the $2 per month for minor child
rem be increased to IS; that a widow
be allowed to draw pension from the